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Decent value

I bought this for my Kitchen, where I needed a DAB radio, something to play CD's on, and a dock/charger for my iPhone. This unit fitted the bill just nicely, and I think I paid less than £100 for it, so it was quite a bargain too.

Firstly, I have to say, you can see where they've saved money. The speakers sound dreadful - so bad that I put them in the loft, and retrieved the speakers from my 1997 Sony hifi - through which this unit sounds much much better.Functionality wise, I really can't complain. I can listen to my iPhone music, and other mp3 players too via the phono sockets on the back (with a suitable cable- not supplied). Radio wise, it also has FM/MW - so if DAB is patchy in your area, you can still enjoy the radio regardless.

All in all, a neat solution for my needs - I would recommend it - just don't expect great sound with the speakers.

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Great system for the money with Ipod DOck and DAB, well worth the price.

I love this hifi system, it allows me to listen to crackle free radio and has great sound quality. It charges my ipod touch from empty to full in less than 2 hours which is quicker than when plugged into my laptop. The speakers are ok but not amazing, not much bass but i use it conected to annother system, with a headphone splitter,which has a sub when i want to listen to bassy music. The base unit is small and overall the hifi is styleish, the CD player is very silent when being used. You can control your ipod using the systems remote which is a really useful feature. Sony has incorpirated a feature where you can set a time for the radio to come on and wake you up and for evening listening set a time for it to turn istself off which i use everyday and is very important to me. Iis very stylish. The speakers only have 1 mid driver of about 3inches each instead of the usual small trebble speaker and slightly larger mid. This reduces the volume of which you can listen and at a certain volume the trebles are distorted. I have overcome these problems in my own way by adding speakers to the system itself. Overall it is great for the money and i love the DAB radio and Super Fast Ipod Dock.

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I'm happy with it ;-)

'Sound ' Sound System!

If you are looking for a sound system that is fairly inexpensive, small, compact, easy to set up, of good quality and provides a docking station for your IPod as well as having Digital audio broadcasting and CD facility, this all in one by Sony is worth considering.

Firstly though I would say if the radio is highly important to you AND you live amongst the mountains, it's not going to fair well at all in picking up a signal.

**Design**

Modern, stylish and black and purple in colour, this sound system sits well in any room. The main unit is about the size of an average shoe box and the IPod docks on top. The only thing with its shiny black colour is, it always attracts dust. This and the TV drive me nuts!

At the front of the main unit is a socket for headphones, USB and a socket for audio in. If you use an MP3 player and not an Ipod, this would be a handy feature for you as you could plug it in and play your music. There is also a clock that is really useful.

At the back of the main unit are sockets for FM/AM and DAB. The radio I am assured is easy to set up but due to my location it's not a feature I'm able to make much use of.

There are also connections for speaker sockets with extendable wires. The speakers actually detach and are moveable. The wires stretch to around 6 feet so you don't have to sit the speakers directly with the base unit. This is quite handy if you want a bit more of a surround sound effect going on.

**IPOD Dock**

The IPOD dock comes with several adapters to fit various IPod models. Basically you choose which one you want and slot it into the top. You then pop your IPod in it and it stands nicely as long as you have the correct fitting insert. The IPOD then charges from the unit (quicker than the laptop I might add) and it can be controlled from the unit's remote control. I find this quite handy as have my system close enough to me. I've noticed though if I stand in the other room and try to use the control, it is very temperamental. You can also control the IPod from the IPod screen.

**Sound**

The sound provided from the speakers is more than adequate and crystal clear but not the best if you are looking for really powerful booming sound. They provide 50W of sound which is fine for me as I have another system for louder blast outs. I listen to a lot of Hard Rock and Metal music and must admit the Bass is a little bit naff on this system.

**Sleep/Play timer**

A great little feature for switching the system on and off at set times.

Overall - a nice little stylish all in one system

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A very good mini Hifi , perfect for docking a I pod

When I first got my I pod I wanted a way to charge it and play it in my house without using my laptop. I was going to get just standard I pod speakers but I stumbled upon this. It is the amazing Sony CMT-BX70DBI mini hifi system. It ticks all the right boxes for me and this is why:

***Features***Many. There is a great abundance of features on this little hifi. A I pod docking station which charges your I pod quicker than the laptop which is great and it also charges whilst the I pod is playing so you can't lose ! The I pod can be controlled with the controller which is great but you do have to be quite close! There is also a selection of adapters for the I pods which are good because they give the I Pod a better stand.There is a CD player which you can't go wrong with as everyone has a few CDs here and there. DAB , FM and AM radio systems. I find having the FM and AM slightly pointless because there is the DAB though. There is also a headphone socket , USB socket and a Auxiliary socket so other MP3 players not just I pods can be used and songs on a USB. There is a clock as well which is always useful !

***Product***The speakers pump out 50W of sound from CDs and I pods which is great and they have long but discrete leads so they can be moved away from the base unit. They look cool as well! The main unit is just a box shape with buttons on the top which can some times get stuck. There is a controller as well but its range isn't great.

***Ease of Use***Simply plug your I pod, CD or other device in and press play! Its as easy as that. There is no set up apart from setting the time and pluging it in!

***Sound Quality***Good sound quality until you crank the volume up. The max volume isn't that much and when your near the top of the scale it seems that there is a slight fuzz in the background of the music which is really annoying. I wouldn't recommended this for house party's.

***Price***£90. A very fair price considering that it has a huge amount of features and it is made my Sony so you are sure that it wont break down on you!

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Compact, great features, sounds really good too!

I finally decided to upgrade my old hi-fi system, and was initially overwhelmed by all the choices and options available. So I sat down, and actually wrote down the main factors in my choice...

I decided I didn't want to spend more than £200, but I wanted a famous and popular brand. I also had just moved into my own home, which isn't huge, so I needed something relatively compact in order to fit it into my storage space. I do love my music, so I didn't want to compromise on sound quality - I listen to a lot of indie, rock, alternative music, so I wanted my new purchase to pack a punch in terms of sound quality. No tinnyness please! Finally I wanted to be able to play CDs, play direct from my iPhone or my girlfriends iPod, and have easy access to XFM (so DAB radio was a must).

Although I do buy online often, I really like to experience this kind of product hands-on in store, so I had a day out exploring and testing similar units. When I first came across this unit, it was fairly unassuming; it only caught my eye because it was Sony, and becasue it had an iPod dock. I thought the speakers may have been a bit small, but don't let the 'Micro' name fool you - this may be a physically small unit, but it seemed to provide a superior sound quality compared to others in my price range. The obvious point here is that I was in a big electrical store, and you can never really tell how a hi-fi will sound until you get it set up in your own home. Fortuantely I wasn't disappointed - it has a great rich sound which fills my lounge nicely.

It's very simple to use, and it now seems my iPhone is a permanent attachment - this is helped by the fact that the cradle also charges it while it's in use! Overall I'm very happy with my purchase - it's ideal for a smaller family home, providing a great quality sound even at lower volumes, and with a great array of features which are simple and quick to use.

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Recommended Sound System from a trustworthy brand

I would`t hesitate in recommending this system from Sony for a second, it really is one of the better bargains and purchases I have done in this department, when buying this from amazon awarded with a system that is set on doing it all, from DAB radio to a cd system, and a most welcomed and very good quality docking system for my iPod, this system will accept any type of iPod actually, and it delivers the music on them in surprising good audio quality!

If you want your sound system to be made up of cool and modern design, I would say this one has that part down! Sony is all about keeping it simple, elegant and stylish, and this black system with a purple display looks very nice hanging out in my living room, and apart from the dust collected on it, it looks just as nice today as it did when I bought it last year. I do prefer not turning the volume all the way up on this system, as it does loose part of its balance and comfortable sound, it gets a bit more pitchy and high, yet not something that bothers me enough to be a reason not to be very pleased with this system! When set up and ready to be used, I found the DAB radio system to be brilliant, and with a radio tuner with thirty different stations, entertainment is delivered whether it`s from the radio, iPod or cd-player!

I spent only 110.99 when buying this product, but I`ve noticed that the cost of it has risen since then, and now has gone up to about 120.00, which I still thinks is a really good bargain, because you will receive a high quality sound system for your money, that is easy and fun to use and presents your music in good sound! This is a solid quality, easy to use sound system from Sony, five out of five shining stars from me!

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Not bad at all

We recently decided to get a new stereo system for our bedroom and did not want to spend a lot of money, basically we did not want to exceed £150 and this fit the bill as it cost us £129.99 we actually bought the BX77 version which is fundamentally the same just a newer version. The main benefit of this sysetm for me is that it comes with an integrated docking station for my ipod so I can play all of my stored music on through the system without having to tarnsfer over any of my music to a seperate hard drive. In addition it has a cd player so I could also access any albums that I have not loaded onto my ipod yet. It also comes with a DAB radio however I'm not very impressed with digital radio as even in Northampton the signal is not always great so I rarely use this feature of the stereo.

Set up was very easy, there are various ipod inserts to allow you to fit a range of ipods depending upon which one you have. It is easy to access your ipod to scroll through your options or you can use the remote that comes with the stereo although obviously you have to be close in order to see the ipod screen.

For the money the sound quality is pretty good however the speakers do sound a bit tinny when dealing with music that has a lot of bass, I guess for the price this is to be expected and if you want a really sharp and precise sound then you will need to splash more cash however for general use it sounds perfectly fine.

It is a rather functional design rather than spectacular, a bit square and boxy, again it sort of reflects the price, however the controls have a nice solid feel to them and I did not find myself worrying about damaging them.

For the price I'm happy with the overall feel and sound of the stereo, whether playing through the ipod or a cd it is very functional and good value for money.

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Great sound system from a trusted brand.

I bought this sound system from Comet and it cost me £118, I reserved it online and picked it up in store. This reservation price saved me around £20. It is a compact size, it is sleek, stylish and black in colour.There is also a high gloss display, which is very attractive and displays information, such as: volume, cd track or what radio station you are listening to. This hi-fi is simple to use and can be operated by easily signposted buttons on the top of the unit and there is a remote control for ease of use; then you can change and the functions or volume from the comfort of your armchair! This sound system has DAB radio, cd and Ipod functions, and you can pre-set up to thirty radio stations. The sound quality is excellent and clear; the sound fills the room and the power is 50w. I have had this sound system for over a year; I have had no problems. It has proved reliable, faultless and easy to use. Overall this is a high quality product, bought at a value for money price with crystal clear sound and with a designer appearance.

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Ideal if you are searching for a multi purpose audio system

Just before Christmas I invested in this system on recommendation of friends and a Curry's technician. I have since concurred with their reviews and have been impressed with the quality of this sony product. Serving both as a Radio with DAB functions and also as an Ipod docking system and CD System, the system filled my every need at a relatively cheap price. It accepts all types of ipod with different holders for each. I managed to source the system in the sales from Amazon at £100 though the price seems to have increased since Christmas with it now retailing at £130-150.

When I was searching for a radio/ speaker system I was caught in a quandary as to whether I should get an all in one wireless system or not. Though this would have helped with fewer wires, the added cost is not worth it. Furthermore the ability to move the position of the speakers can accomodate a surround sound feeling, and will subsequently fill any room comfortably.

As for the quality; the sound qualilty is good though can, as expected, get a bit tinny at higher volumes. The bass provided is not massive and neither is the volume. However, as long as you don't expect speakers fit for parties this will be fine. The radio, once set up is brilliant. Sadly the signal in my area is not that good for DAB. Otherwise the normal service provided is fine!

Overall I would thoroughly recommend this product for its lowish price and high quality!

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Does what it should, easy to use, and at a great price

After years of faithful service from my Aiwa separates, the amplifier finally gave up the ghost earlier this year so I decided to look for an inexpensive and smaller alternative. After several days of shopping around online, I decided on the Sony CMT-BX70DBi, tempted mainly be the low price (around £115 at the time).

I must admit I viewed it as a stop-gap purchase at the time but now, several months later, I have still not been tempted to replace it with a more expensive unit. Here is my review...

The unit is quite compact and light enough to be placed on a sturdy shelf (but don't place it too high up because the controls are on top of the unit). The speakers are detached from the main unit and the wires are around 6 feet in length, providing further placement options.

The rear of the unit has sockets for AM, FM and Digital (DAB) aerials, all of which were supplied, meaning I didn't have to buy anything else to set the radio up.

Apart from the main power lead, the only other connections on the rear are the speaker sockets, which are the bare-wire type, allowing you to extend the speaker wires if necessary - although I would have liked to see the same bare-wire connectors on the back of the speakers to make this easier.

The front has a 2.5mm headphone jack socket as you would expect.

The front of the unit also has an audio-in 2.5mm jack socket. As far as it goes, this socket does what it should and I have had my computer connected to it for months without any issues - but why is it on the front? I suppose this allows for ease of use if the user has multiple devices to switch between but in my case, I would have preferred a pair of phono sockets in the back.

There is also the iPod dock that comes with an array of plastic adapters to suit your particular iPod model but, bizarrely, I found that my iPod (a 4th generation full-fat classic) didn't sit properly with any of them and worked much better when I left the adapter off.

Once mounted, the iPod charges from the unit and the iPod can be controlled from the unit's remote control - although I found this feature to be practically useless because I had to stand close enough to see the iPod display so I might as well have activated it manually.

I also found that when my iPod is in place, the time is constantly displayed when the unit is on standby, but when I remove it, the time disappears from display when on standby - which I thought was a strange "feature".

I would describe the sound quality as "adequate but not great", but for £115 what can you expect? I actually found that by using my old Aiwa speakers rather than the supplied Sony units, the sound was beefed up a lot and lost a bit of the "tinny" cheapness that the Sony speakers displayed.

The CD player and Tuner do exactly what you would expect them to do - although both are much easier to use with the remote control rather than the buttons on top of the unit.

The CD player plays MP3 CDs as well as the old-fashioned conventional type and the program facility works across any folder structure on the disc.

There is a sleep timer that can be set to switch the unit off after a given time (10 minutes to 90 minutes in 10 minute increments or after the current disc has finished if set to AUTO mode), and a play timer that can be set to switch the unit on at a given time.

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great all rounder with some smart features

a great, smart, sleek and stylish system with good crisp sound with a stong bass. easy to use and reliable. probably not a good system for a large room but for rooms such as a bedroom or kitchen i could not see better system to choose. can be easily mounted on the a shelf freeing up space in the room. connecting the i pod to the docking station is a very easy way to access your favourite tracks and in the future systems will probably phase out the need for a cd feature. the dab radio is also a great new technology, meaning you can enjoy interference free radio, even medium wave stations such as five live or talksport sound so much clearer when compared to the old, dated analogue radios. for the price i feel this system offers superb value for money and excellent quality sound, a definalty recommendation.

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A good feature packed hi-fi that is a stylish addition let down by the remote and lack of bass

I replaced an old Panasonic hi-fi with this new fancy item as I needed an iPod dock and a DAB radio. It is a very stylish unit in trendy shiny black, and it is really small- the picture suggests it is much bigger than it is- but it is deep.

The system is one of the few I found on the market that had DAB, FM and AM radio tuners. This was important to me as I enjoy listening to football, and often BBC radio Scotland has a different game on different frequencies- it can be very annoying when the game you want is on DAB or on AM on sets that don't have this tuner! The radio I have found to be excellent, I live in a decent DAB signal area- my TV aerial had to renewed to get all digital TV channels- however the small wires, that I have simply uncoiled down the back of the unit it sits on have absolutely no problems in picking up the stations available.

The iPod dock is another good feature. I have an iPod touch and I can listen to all the tunes on it, as well as recharge it with no problems. The sound quality is good- the only issue is that if you play a video on the touch it is rotated the wrong way. A minor issue.

Sounds quality on all modes is excellent, but I would say it could do with a bit more bass on the sound, some rock tracks can be a bit weak and tinny. Probably could be improved with better speakers.

Other issues? I'd suggest that the major one is the remote control- it is small and you need an instruction manual for it at hand till you work out all the buttons- what a nightmare, someone just fired tiny buttons all over it- my TV and digibox remotes are bigger with less buttons on it! Once you get used to it, it is fine but it is a bit poor for me. Less is more as they say!

Overall the set is good, and for around £100-120 notes, you can't go far wrong.

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love this neat little unit, does everything it promises and looks good too.

I couldn't resist buying this little unit for the bedroom, the perfect partner for my I-Pod Touch. It looks great, takes up much less room than my previous unit and works perfectly. The black finish fits in anywhere and is easy to clean. I had heard of the charging problems with some I-Pod's but found the dock cradle included with the hifi (also black, which is a vast improvement on the one supplied by Apple) sits it at the right angle and you just have to remember to press the I-Pod firmly into place and away you go.We have good DAB reception here and I found a good variety of stations including the wonderful BBC 7, using the wire arial supplied, the CD works well and it is just a pity your can't copy CD's onto the I-Pod using the unit but you can't have everything and I think it is excellent value for money.Apart from the recording the only other gripe I have is the speakers not being magnetically shielded. This is not really a problem for me as I don't have a TV in the room but for anyone considering putting it in a bedroom or as part of a multi function area I would look into replacing the supplied speakers just to be on the safe side.

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A great mini hifi with quality sound and functions.

I bought myself an iPod Touch last Autumn and loved it, the only problem was that it sounded tinny if playing it without the headphones. I decided I needed to be able to connect it to a music system. The problem being that my music system was a cheap CD/radio player with no ability to connect my iPod to it. So off I went on a search to find a new music system. I wanted something to not only plug my iPod into, but also to play CDs (as I have hundreds of them) and radio functionality (depsite the awful signal we get up here in the hills of Mid Wales).

This is where the Sony CMT-BX70BI comes in. It fitted the bill perfectly! It's got an integrated iPod docking station, CD player, a radio tuner and a DAB digital radio.

The iPod dock is fitted neatly into the top of the mini hifi system. In the box you'll find a set of inserts (which fit most iPods), just pick the appropriate insert for your iPod and slot it into the top, this ensures the iPod sits nicely into the dock. However, once or twice it has taken me a few seconds to actually get my iPod to connected properly, but that's probably more to do with the fact that I'm clumsy than anything else.

When docked into the top of the mini hifi system, the iPod can either be controlled from the iPod screen or using the remote control supplied with the hifi system. I tend to use the remote control, but I must admit that it can be difficult to see the iPod screen from a few metres away (maybe I should put my specs on!). I usually stand a metre or two away to choose my songs. I guess if you don't mind what you listen to (after all, it should be music you like on your iPod) then you can just press play and let it go.

Something to note is that this mini hifi system will charge your iPod. I have the latest iPod Touch and had read some reports on the internet about some systems not charging the new range of iPods. Well, I can safely say that this system will charge your iPod. In fact, my iPod Touch often sits in the dock charging. And yes, it charges while playing (and even while switched off), so a bonus all round.

If you have an MP3 player which isn't an iPod, you can attach this to the hifi system via the "Audio In" plug at the front.

The CD player is as simple as you'd expect it to be. You put your CD in the tray, push it in and away you go. The CD tray slots nicely into the front of the system and you can barely tell it's there.

Also on the front of the system is the screen which shows which setting you're on (e.g. if you've got your iPod connected and playing it says "iPod"). When on standby, the time will be displayed (which always comes in handy).

I can't comment much on the radio as we have such poor reception and can't yet get DAB radio. The system comes with a wire ariel - I've always found these a bit useless as there's usually a need to tape it or somehow affix it up the wall. I found I got the best reception when I was stood on a stood holding the wire in the air, but somehow that's just not practical for everyday radio use! Mind you, that would happen with any system, so I make do with a crackly reception until such time that we're able to get a DAB signal (or I move the system to another room). What I will say is that its relatively easy to tune stations in.

As well as using the remote control, you can also control the hifi using the flat buttons fitted neatly onto the top of the system. They don't stand out at all and fit in nicely with the design.

Now to the look and feel...

The CMT-BX70DBI comes in black and silver (CMT-BX70DBI-S), although the silver one (which I have) is half black anyway! I would say the main box of the system is about the size of a shoebox and so fits nicely into most spaces (making sure there is enough room for the iPod to be docked on top). It comes with 2 speakers which can be placed either side of the box (as I have done) or further away should you wish (as the length of wire is adequate).

This hifi system not only looks great with its sleek, stylish design, but also sounds fantastic. I was amazed at how much better than my old system this system sounded. The sound is crystal clear and the music fills the room.

All in all, I would defintely say this system is worth it's price. It has great functions and "does what it says on the tin". It's just what I wanted!

How much is this nice bit of kit? Well, a bit more than what I would usually pay, but it was the only one I could find that did what I wanted it to and had great reviews. Plus, Sony is a great brand name so you know you're getting a decent product. Sony's RRP (recommended retail price) is £159, but at the time of writing this system can be bought for around the £129 mark from Amazon UK, but the priced dropped quite a bit before Christmas before coming back up again, so you may be lucky to get it cheaper.